Episode 14 - How to Build Your Online Presence: Practical Tips for Creatives

 

Episode 14 - How to Build Your Online Presence: Practical Tips for Creatives

Building an online presence as a creative is no longer just a nice-to-have—it’s essential.

Whether you’re just starting your creative journey or you’ve been at it for years, your online presence is a key factor in growing your business, reaching new audiences, and making meaningful connections.

In this episode of the Creative Juggle Joy podcast, Kaylie Edwards shares her tips for building an online presence that feels authentic and is effective in getting your art seen by the right people. If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed or unsure about where to start, this episode is for you.

The Importance of an Online Presence

You’ve probably heard people say that "visibility is key" when it comes to online success, and they’re right. Without a solid online presence, how can anyone find your work?

Having an online presence not only helps you showcase your creations but also provides an opportunity to build a community and make a living from your passion.

Kaylie shares her journey of starting her creative business, from local craft fairs to launching an Etsy shop, and later pivoting during the pandemic. Having a visible online presence allowed her to stay connected with her audience and continue growing her business despite external challenges.

Common Mistakes Creatives Make Online

When starting out online, it’s easy to fall into the trap of trying to do everything at once. From Instagram and Pinterest to YouTube and TikTok, the temptation to be on every platform can be overwhelming.

Kaylie emphasizes the importance of starting small and focusing on one platform that aligns with your creative style and audience. Master one platform before expanding to others to avoid burnout and spread yourself too thin.

Another common mistake? Inconsistency. Posting sporadically won’t help you gain traction. Social media algorithms love consistency, so make sure you’re posting regularly.

Kaylie shares how her podcast has helped her stay on track with weekly posts, and how you can do the same by committing to creating one or two pieces of content each week, whether it’s a blog, podcast, or video.

 

Know Your Audience and Choose the Right Platform

One of the most important lessons in this episode is the need to understand your audience. Before you dive into social media or start creating content, take some time to define who you’re speaking to.

Research where they hang out online and choose the platform that aligns with their interests. For example, visual artists might thrive on Instagram or Pinterest, while those looking to build a community might do better on Facebook groups.

 

Tech Doesn’t Have to Be Scary

Kaylie offers some great advice for those who feel intimidated by tech. Whether it’s website building or social media tools, Kaylie encourages creatives not to shy away from asking for help.

There’s no shame in reaching out to tech support when needed—it’ll save you time and frustration.

For website building, Kaylie recommends platforms like Payhip, Wix, Squarespace, and WordPress—simple, user-friendly tools for getting your online presence up and running.

Consistency, Engagement, and Soft Selling

Consistency is key when it comes to building your online presence, but engagement is just as important.

Make sure you’re interacting with your followers, responding to comments and DMs, and offering value. Use soft selling techniques like storytelling to create a deeper connection with your audience and let them into your creative process.

Conclusion

Building an online presence as a creative can feel overwhelming, but it’s totally manageable when you take it step by step. Start small, stay consistent, and engage with your audience. And if you need a little extra help, check out Kaylie’s 5-Day Visibility Breakthrough Challenge for actionable steps to get noticed and build your visibility.

Next week, Delores and Kaylie will be discussing setting up your first online shop—so stay tuned for that!



Resources Mentioned in the Episode:

 

TRANSCRIPT:
Kaylie Edwards (00:05)

Hey everyone, and welcome back to the Creative JuggleJoy podcast. I'm Kaylie Edwards, your host for today, and I've got a solo episode lined up for you. Today, we're diving into a topic that's super important, but can also feel a little overwhelming. Building an online presence as a creative. Now, I know that a lot of you, especially if you're a little bit more on the seasoned side of the creative spectrum,

 

might feel a bit intimidated by social media or technology. And hey, I totally get that. I've always been a bit of a techie person. I grew up with tech, as a kid, and I've had tech related jobs before, so I don't usually feel overwhelmed by it, but I still get frustrated by certain aspects and certain platforms and software that I have to use. There have been many times where I've been stuck

 

no matter how many guides I read or researched and I've had to call tech support for help. So trust me, when I say it's okay to not know everything, asking for help is actually a smart move. It saved me a tonne of time. But today I want to help you build your confidence and feel more comfortable with getting visible online. First off.

 

Why do you even need an online presence as a creative? Well, here's the short answer. Visibility. Without it, how are people going to find you and your beautiful creations? Your online presence is your chance to share your work with the world. Build a community, ultimately make a living from your passion as well.

 

When I first started my creative journey, I didn't really do much with social media or with the online aspect. When I first started with my candles, it was a little bit later on, I started with that because of the pandemic. kind of had to do that. I started off with craft fairs and markets and things locally.

 

But by the time I'd set up an Etsy shop and started promoting on there and social media, it got to a point where I had to actually change my business model But having a solid online presence has allowed me over the year to stay visible and connect with my audience, even when life got busy. And I've had to pivot because of the pandemic. And let's be honest.

 

You've probably heard about creatives who've built thriving businesses online and people who haven't. And it's no surprise. Having an online presence gives you the chance to reach people beyond your local community. Expanding your opportunities.

 

It allows people to find you and your art or creations. It allows you to take control of your story and decide where you want to show up in this digital world. So even if you're feeling a little tech shy, remember you're doing this for yourself and your future audience. They want to find you and your creations and it's worth it to put yourself out there. It's

 

that fear of being seen and being visible online. And hey, I do get it. If maybe you've got some trauma in your past or you've had to deal with bad comments from people or you've been bullied before, I know sometimes that that can also put you off from getting online and being out there in case you get negative comments.

 

but there is ways around it. So I encourage you to still try and find a way that you can make it work for yourself. We did talk about it in a previous episode before about getting visible and the fear of it. So please check that out.

 

Now, let's talk about some common mistakes that new creatives often make when they're trying to get visible online, especially when you're just starting out. I've made these mistakes myself. One of the biggest...

 

Mistakes I see is creative trying to do everything at once. They want to be on every platform, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Pinterest, YouTube, you name it. And I totally get it. You want to reach as many people as possible. But if you're just starting out, this can be super overwhelming. So start small. Pick one platform that suits your creative style. Are you a visual artist? Then Instagram or Pinterest might be a good fit.

 

Do you love writing or want to share your process? Consider starting a blog. Focus on mastering one platform before you try to conquer them all.

 

When I first started using social media for my business, consistency was my biggest challenge. It still sometimes is today. I would post now and then, but never on a schedule. And guess what? No one noticed. Social media algorithms love consistency. So even if it's just posting once or twice a week, make sure you're doing it regularly on the same date, same time.

 

This is where I've made progress. Having this podcast has given me a rhythm. I know I need to post about each episode, which forces me to to be consistent. Honestly, it's been a game changer. My feed is filling up regularly now with content. And it's also forcing me a bit more to actually post about different parts of my business as well.

 

So if you're looking for something to help you stay on track, consider creating one to two pieces of content a week to start off with. Whether that's a blog, a YouTube channel or a podcast like mine, having content to create will help you stay consistent and give your audience something to engage with. It gives you ideas for content. And if you can plan ahead for that as well, let's say you plan

 

content ideas for three months, so 12 weeks. You then know what you're posting, what you're going to talk about.

 

And it makes scheduling out much easier and quicker.

 

And I can't stress this enough how important it is to know your audience before diving into social media and even creating your product. If you don't have a clear idea of who you're speaking to, your posts will feel scattered and you won't get the engagement you're hoping for. Start by defining your target audience, then do some research to find out where they hang out online. Where can you find your target audience?

 

Who are your ideal customers and where are they going to be? You don't want to waste time on platforms that don't serve you. For example, if you're an artist or a visual creator, Instagram or Pinterest might be the way to go. Or even YouTube. But if you're more into building community or selling, Facebook groups could be a better fit. You don't need to be everywhere.

 

be where your audience is. For the likes of some visual artists, they may be more aimed at commercial companies. who might be looking for like office paintings or office decor. Then maybe it might be best going on the likes of LinkedIn, which is more business to business based.

 

Speaking of platforms, here's a biggie. Choose your platform based on your audience. It's that simple. Look at each platform's demographics, match that with who you're creating for. For example, if you're selling art, Instagram and Pinterest are awesome because they're visually centric, as I've said. But if you're focused on education or selling creative products, you might want to start with Facebook and Facebook groups

 

I'm a big fan of Khoros social media demographics guide on Google. You can find that I'll link it below, which breaks down updated stats for each platform. So here's a fun fact over 50 % of Instagram users are between the ages of 18 and 34. I'm 31 well at the time of this recording.

 

So Instagram is actually somewhere where I've started to gravitate to. So if your target audience is in that age group, Instagram could be a great fit for you. It's also quite split with Instagram. It's kind of 50-50 with the gender as well. Same as Facebook. It's still 50-50. You'll find more females on likes of Pinterest.

 

So you just need to have a look and see who you're aiming your products towards. I also want to give you a little tip. Look at your competitors or similar creatives to you. If they're doing well on a particular platform, there's a good chance you will too. Check out what posts are performing well for them and think about how you can add your unique twist to them.

 

Consistency is everything. Like I said earlier, posting consistently will help you get noticed. But it's also about how you engage with your audience too. Engagement is key to building relationships with your followers. Seriously, when people comment on your posts, respond back. So if you post, let's say you post in the morning before the school run,

 

Make sure when you get back from the school run, you're checking that post to see if there's any interactions on it. Have people commented or have people DM'd you?

 

Make sure you're liking their comments, you're responding to DMs and the comments. This will help the algorithm boost your content, your posts, because they're seeing that you're actively engaging with your followers or with audience.

 

This is how you build that trust and loyalty. If you're on platforms like Instagram, using reels and carousels is a great way to get in front of new eyes on the platform because Instagram boosts reels and carousels. Carousels seem to be getting more traction now with more reach with people who aren't actually following you yet. But don't just sell, engage with your community.

 

Soft selling works best in the long run. You can also hard sell promotions. So basically like the buy now post, you can still do that, but make sure they're a little bit less and you're providing more value in your posts. So behind the scenes, stories about your art or what you're up to.

 

And don't forget to share why you create.

 

You know, using storytelling to share your journey, give value and offer advice. Let your audience see the stories behind your art. The more personal you get, the more people will connect with you and your art.

 

and creations if you do crafts. All right, now let's talk about some tech. I know many of you are thinking, Kaylie tech can be a nightmare, but I promise it's not impossible. There have been times when I've been so stuck and had to call tech support because I could not figure something out no matter how many guides I read. It's frustrating. I get it, but it's okay to ask for help.

 

I have spent hours, sometimes even days, trying to figure something out for myself and then in the end I'm just like, why didn't I just ask tech support to help me with this? I spent like 10 minutes on the phone with them and they fixed it for me or walked me through it.

And I'm just thinking I've wasted all that time when I could have just asked for help. So I would rather spend 10 minutes on the phone with tech support than waste hours banging my head against the wall.

 

So please don't be afraid to ask for help. It'll save you time and frustration in the long run.

 

All right, let's talk about tech tools that will make your life a lot easier when you're starting out online.

Website builders, obviously having a website somewhere where people can be directed to to see your stuff that you've got, anything you're selling, your portfolio you want to show off for the body of work to get customers in, then a website is ideal.

 

is something I think you should have. I know there's some people that say that having a website, you don't need one, but you do for visibility.

It's somewhere where you can direct somebody online to go and see what you offer. So I love website builders like Payhip.

It has a free tier with all the features. I think the only thing that, obviously what they get off you is like a percentage of any sales that you get.

 

but you can also lower that by upgrading to their plans, but I stayed with their free plan when I started out with them. But also you can check out Wix, Squarespace or WordPress, which is a standard.

They're simple, intuitive and made for people who are not as techy. So if you prefer Shopify, because I know some people recommend that and some people swear by it.

 

though I'm not personally a fan. I have client who uses Shopify and she doesn't mind it and there's a few other people I know who use it but yeah, I wasn't really a fan of using it. But you can also go and try it out.

Try these sites out, have a go, have a look. Some of them come with free trials, some of them are free anyway to use. Just have a play around and see which one works for you.

 

Content creation, so for the likes of graphics. Canva is awesome, I love Canva, I'm in it daily. So if you're into video and you wanna do reels, you can use CapCut for editing

 

And you can use that on the mobile so you can edit it and then post it straight up onto Instagram or Facebook or Pinterest.

For content planning, you can keep it all organized with the likes of Trello and Notion. I use both those platforms to help me do my daily tasks, to plan out content, to, I even put content within Notion.

 

And then plan that all out and then I just copy and paste it when I need it. Then there's scheduling tools you can use. The likes of Buffer, Planoly, Tailwind, which can help you automate your social media posts and schedule things out ahead of time.

Even Meta Business Suite, which is how you can use the business tools or features on Facebook and Instagram. They have scheduling features for Facebook and Instagram through

 

Meta Business Suite, which is free. So you can always use that as well. For the likes of email marketing, platforms like MailerLite, Flodesk, ConvertKit.

Even EmailOctopus is another one I came across, which has a free plan and a perfect for staying in touch with your audience. And there's some, a lot of them are really simple to use, like MailerLite and EmailOctopus are easy. Flodesk.

 

is made for like visuals, creative and like artists. But if you do want more automation side for your business, then ConvertKit is probably better. Cause it's made for creators

 

These tools are simple yet powerful and will make your life a lot easier as you get started.

 

With the tools that I've recommended, you can just test them out, have a look, see what other people say about that tool or platform, and just pick one which you resonate with the most.

 

All right, to wrap up, start small, stay consistent and engage with your audience. That's the secret to building your online presence as a creative. If you want more help getting started, I'd love for you to check out my five day visibility breakthrough challenge.

It's now a self-paced course on my platform that will guide you through actionable steps to build your visibility and get noticed. Next week, Delores and I will dive into setting up your first online shop.

 

and where and how to get started selling your creations online. You won't want to miss it. Thanks so much for tuning in today. Keep creating, keep juggling, and most importantly, keep finding joy in the process. Catch you next time.

 

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